Recap of The Second Presidential Debate
Sunday night in Saint Louis, Missouri, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump squared off in the second of the three presidential debates held before the election. This debate was highly anticipated, as a mere 48 hours before, a 2005 video surfaced of Donald Trump and Billy Bush talking about women in terms considered by most to be derogatory and highly explicit. Hillary Clinton has also not been without her scandals this week: hacked emails, obtained by WikiLeaks, revealed short passages from Clinton’s paid speeches to Wall Street banks. These passages contain ideals that seem to contrast with Clinton’s beliefs that she has been stating all along the campaign trail.
The debate contrasted with the first one because it was in the town hall format and a much more casual setting. Still, each candidate dressed in formal wear but were given chairs to sit in while the other candidate was speaking. The podium microphones were replaced with simple handheld mics, giving the whole debate a much more informal and personal feel. Notepads were placed on tables next to the candidate’s chairs, and Clinton could often be seen jotting down notes while Trump was speaking. There were two moderators for the debate: Anderson Cooper of CNN and Martha Raddatz of ABC. Each shared the daunting task of keeping the candidates on topic and in-line. The two moderators were situated in front of the candidate’s chairs, and surrounding the candidates were people from the Saint Louis area, who through a Gallop political poll, conveyed that they were still undecided on who to vote for on November 8th.
The first question of the night was given by a member of the special group of undecided voters. The woman asked if the candidates thought that they were being positive role models for kids all over the country. The night continued with questions from both online and members of the audience. The focus of these questions ranged from the economy, to the environment, to the Muslim-American community. Each candidate had 2 minutes to answer the question and were sometimes given time to reply to what their opponent had just said.
Even though the questions were a lot more focused this time around (as compared to the first debate), the candidates often skipped over their specific policies to bash and discredit each other. This discrediting is common in election season as we often see attack ads from both sides. However, in this case, it seemed to be more focused on the personal lives and choices made by the candidates as opposed to their policies and plans.
A highlight (and maybe even a glimpse of hope) from the debate came from the last question from the night, where a member of the undecided group of voters asked each candidate to name something they admired about their opponent. In an election season that has often been plagued with aggression, personal attacks, and demeaning language, the candidates went past themselves and their own personal agenda to acknowledge a strength of the other. Clinton discussed how Trump’s children were wonderful kids and had grown up to be great people. Trump spoke of Clinton’s perseverance: how she never gave up even when things got tough. This moment of the night reminded us all that, in fact, this election isn’t all about putting others down. It’s about raising each other up and helping each other. After all, that’s all either candidate wants to do: to make America the best it can be, a nation that is safe, happy, and prosperous.
